Features
Tomorrow
Invariably every couple of years, a touring company of “Annie” comes to town.
It's hard not to be hopeful listening to the newest red-headed orphan belt out the venerable show tune that draws a crowd to the Broadway musical every time:
“The sun'll come out tomorrow. Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there'll be sun …
“Tomorrow! Tomorrow! I love ya, Tomorrow! You're always a day a-way!”
Tomorrow was exactly what providers were thinking about at Medtrade Spring. But they weren't thinking in the same optimistic terms as Annie.
With prices for Round 1 of competitive bidding due out this month — CMS may have announced them by the time you read this — providers were anxious about their chances for survival, and emotions were running high.
As I was talking to one longtime HME owner about the situation, she began to cry. With tears streaming down her face, she said, “I've just realized I'll have to close my business. I don't think I can win a bid, and if I don't, I won't make it.”
As the reality of competitive bidding hits, it seems many others feel the same way.
The results of HomeCare's May web poll, in fact, offer some sobering insights into providers' plans for the future: More than a third of those participating don't think they have one in HME.
While just over half said they have no plans to leave the business, the rest aren't so sure. The numbers, though unscientific, are an unfortunate reminder of CMS' projection that after competitive bidding is fully implemented, only half of DMEPOS providers will still be in the Medicare business.
“I know your poll results are disturbing, but they are not surprising,” Sean Schwinghammer, executive director of the Accredited Medical Equipment Providers of America, told Senior Editor Susanne Hopkins in an interview about the poll. He noted the level of frustration and discouragement that is pervading the industry, adding that a survey he did for AMEPA in November revealed much the same results as HomeCare's.
